by Barbara Lishko | Sep 2, 2024
Over the years, I have opened my heart and shared many stories about my spiritual journey as a Catholic Christian and how God has allowed me to play a tiny part in His plans. I have given the reader an inside peek at our ever-evolving family and some goofy situations...
by Barbara Lishko | Jun 23, 2024
Back in the day, there was a well-known comedy sketch by Bill Cosby. The premise involved a conversation between God and Noah who was asked to build an ark. One of the key lines spoken by God in this humorous exchange is when Noah starts to push back and...
by Barbara Lishko | Jun 16, 2024
My father walked in angry and weary. Lifting up his pant leg he showed his young children the gauze wrapped ankle covered in blood. As a mailman, dogs often stood between him and delivering mail. Dad was the oldest of four children. His parents were of German descent...
by Barbara Lishko | May 12, 2024
It’s Mother’s Day once again. I am blessed to have celebrated over forty Mother’s Days. Before we had kids, we were guilty of making “my kid will never…” statements. Words we soon learned to eat. I discovered a clever kitchen towel a few months ago that read, “As soon...
by Barbara Lishko | Mar 31, 2024
Easter morning, and it is pouring rain in Phoenix, which sounds like a mythical fairytale. Down here in the Southwest, we take it when we get it, even when the water balloon hunt I planned may never come to pass. I know you people in other parts of the country deal...
by Barbara Lishko | Mar 10, 2024
I can’t tell you how many times I heard the word help when the kids were growing up. Help! “He’s (insert any descriptor here, looking, laughing, touching, or staring) at me.” Help! “I don’t understand the math assignment.” You’re alone...
by Barbara | Mar 1, 2024
How is your Lent going? We have almost completed week two. Did you commit to giving up, taking up, and detaching? I started strong and then began to get busy and fizzled out a little bit. Not entirely, mind you, just step-by-step lazy and distracted. I am a continuous...
by Barbara | Jan 9, 2024
Each day brings with it new challenges and struggles. It is easy to get overwhelmed, anxious and exhausted just thinking of how to cope. Why does it have to be so hard at times? A friend told me recently she didn't know that in her retirement she would deal with so...
by Barbara | Nov 24, 2023
I've read many accounts of how a wife was chosen in Scripture. It's clear, God guided the servants who were tasked to find that special someone, often an integral part of salvation history. Let's take for instance Eliezer who was sent by Abraham to find Issac a bride....
by Barbara | Nov 11, 2023
It's easy to distinguish when a child is happy or unhappy because they give clear signs which indicate their feelings. There are times when we could misread their emotions and cause further distress. Hence, the guessing game begins. Are you hungry? Does your tummy...
by Barbara | Sep 24, 2023
One of the many favorite and visually impactful events is the candlelight rosary procession that happens every night at Lourdes. Thousands and even ten thousands all process around the grounds saying the rosary. Every language can be heard but together after every...
by Barbara | Sep 23, 2023
Forty years ago, we came to Lourdes for the first time. We were living in England and Mark was flying for the U.S. Air Force serving at RAF Upper Heyford. We had lost our first child to miscarriage three years prior while living in South Korea. Adding heartbreak to...
by Barbara | Sep 22, 2023
Here we find the story of the devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus. It is here where Jesus appeared to St. Margaret Mary Alacoque. As a child she dedicated herself to the Blessed Virgin. As she grew older, her mother encouraged her to be more social hoping she would...
by Barbara | Sep 21, 2023
This beautiful Gothic style church on the outskirts of Normandy is about 93 miles west of Paris. It is the sole shrine in the world dedicated to praying for the dead. Fr. Paul Joseph Buguet (1843-1918), a humble rural parish priest, is the founder of the shrine...
by Barbara | Sep 20, 2023
This is one of France's most spectacular sites. Mont St. Michel lies one kilometer out to sea off the Normandy coast of northern France. This Benedictine Abbey is perched on a rocky inlet. The tides move over 45 feet throughout a 24-hour period. Today it felt like we...
by Barbara | Sep 19, 2023
We continued north today to the Convent of Carmel where Therese entered religious life at fifteen years old. We viewed some of Therese's personal items and toured the family home with many original items still in place. St. Therese's body was not incorrupt. She was 24...
by Barbara | Sep 18, 2023
As we departed the busyness of Paris we stopped by for a few quick pictures at the Eiffel Tower. This iconic reminder of France was constructed for the 1889 Exposition Universelle. This date also marked the 100th anniversary of the French Revolution. Some thought it...
by Barbara | Sep 17, 2023
Thanks for joining us on this pilgrimage in France to some of the most beautiful and holy sites. Today we arrived on the Rue de Bac, to visit the Shrine of the Miraculous Medal. It is here that we see the incorrupt body of St Catherine Laboure. You can read more about...
by Barbara | Sep 8, 2023
I love words! Apart from monotonous whining or mundane dribble, words excite me. I love words so much that when discipling our kids as teens I would put them into a coma as I worded them to death about the dangers of their actions. Isn't it exciting when you...
by Barbara | Aug 29, 2023
Chocolate is my go-to flavor when eradicating my craving for something sweet. Not just any chocolate suffices, as I’ve spent a lifetime honing what gratifies. It’s easy to recognize a counterfeit when I’ve tasted the real deal. Humans have favorite foods, clothes,...
by Barbara | Jun 10, 2023
Day 7 NovenaI perform miracles in proportion to your full surrender to me and to your not thinking of yourselves. I sow treasure troves of graces when you are in the deepest poverty. No person of reason, no thinker, has ever performed miracles, not even among the...